World Water Day – Water Essentials and Interesting Facts

World Water Day

So, today is the day we celebrate water. You know, that miracle we drink to stay alive, source of all the live on the Earth. Miracle you can stare in for hours, or listen as it flows in the river basin to calm yourself… you know, that miracle which consists of two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen we use for powering our cities, growing our crops and cooling our nuclear power plants.

Well, soon it will be a month since I have started working in energy efficiency industry and my first project is right in the middle of the water–energy nexus. You can read more about the LocPOWER, energy harnessing control valve, in one of my previous article. But here, since today is the World Water Day, I just wanted to share with you some interesting facts, resources and platforms I’ve run into while doing some research on the connection between water and energy.

Take a look, and do not forget when handling the tap, that water we have today is just squeezed ice from asteroids and protoplanets during the Earth’s early evolution. You do not want to waste the resource for whose creation we would need another collision with an asteroid, do you?

Global water facts

* Nine out of ten catastrophes globally are connected with water – too much water or too little.

* Without efficiency gains, global demand for water will outstrip currently accessible supplies by 40% by 2030.

* Water needs for energy production are set to grow at twice the rate of energy demand.

* On a global scale, less than half of all wastewater is collected and less than one fifth of all wastewater is treated.

* About 8% of the global energy generation is used for pumping, treating and transportation water to various consumers.

* Globally, about 2% of the world’s total energy consumption is used in collecting and treating wastewater.

* At the national level, drinking water and wastewater systems account for 3%to4% of U.S. energy use. This is equivalent to 56 billion kilowatt hours(kWh) annually, and the generation of almost 45 million tons of greenhouse gases (GHG). At the community level, drinking water and wastewater systems are typically the largest energy consumers accounting for 25%to40% of a municipality’s total energy bill. Approximately 80% of municipal water processing and distribution costs are for electricity.